


Ares

by viscaneymessi



Series: Origin of Mnemosyne [1]
Category: Football RPF, Real Person Fiction
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-01
Updated: 2016-08-03
Packaged: 2018-06-05 15:58:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,520
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6711613
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/viscaneymessi/pseuds/viscaneymessi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>one, two, three, four<br/>I declare a love war<br/>five, six, seven, eight<br/>threading all our words with hate<br/>nine, ten, eleven, twelve<br/>we will sacrifice ourselves<br/>thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, more--<br/>let's destroy what we adore<br/>-c.k<br/>After Leo catches Neymar cheating, they both declare an all-out war.  No feelings are spared, no secrets are safe, because, after all, "anything is fair in love and war."</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Beginning of The End

**Author's Note:**

> ↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓ BE SURE TO READ BELOW // VERY IMPORTANT TO STORY LINE AND UNDERSTANDING ↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓ 
> 
> Hey reader!,
> 
> Okay so this is my first work in the series Origin of Mnemosyne (Mnemosyne is goddess story telling and memory and the entire series is various stories and struggles of Neymar and Messi). Each story in the series has a Greek God as the title, and the story has to do with that God. For example, this story's title is Ares, the God of War, meaning that in this story Neymar and Messi go to war with each other. I hope that this idea isn't too confusing, but if you have any questions, ask me and I can clear things up. 
> 
> Also, in this chapter there is a lot of flashbacks, I tried to make them clear without just saying where the flashback began but I will use ~• ↓ •~ above where the flashback begins and ~• ↑ •~ below where the flashback ends. This will hopefully clear up any confusion. 
> 
> The first couple chapters will be really sad, but don't worry it will get better in the end.
> 
> Be sure to comment any questions or just if you like the series! The support really helps :)... enjoy xx  
> p.s follow my tumblr blog: viscaneymessi (if you want to) :))
> 
> -Kiarra <3

Dig your nails into my chest and scrape into my heart

Promise me you’ll keep it safe while tearing it apart

Your words inside my ear block out the pain under my skin

But with blood on your fingernails we all know where they’ve been  
  


 

Neymar awoke from the loud melody of a police siren driving past his house.  His whole body ached, head thumping with a raging hangover.  Laying on his back, he reached up to touch his throbbing forehead.  He hissed, as he could barely move his hand, as it was too swollen around a large cut across his knuckles.  Ney groaned, as he found a matching cut across his forehead, right over one of his eyes.  He immediately knew that this cut was deep and would probably leave a scar.  Another blemish on his beautiful face, he cringed at the thought. 

 He reached over to look at his phone on the bedside table.  The light made him wince from it being so bright; it was only 4:12 in the morning and somehow he missed 37 calls from Rafinha, 12 from Dani, and over 100 texts in a group chat entitled  _ Brazukas, _ followed by many emojis (courtesy of Neymar).  Confused, he tried to think about what he did last night.  

After a couple minutes deep in thought, he was still drawing a blank.  He remembered leaving his house, but the rest of the night seemed to be removed from his memory.  Neymar called Rafinha in an attempt to figure out why he had a cut on his forehead and why he couldn’t remember what happened last night. 

The call rang once and was immediately picked up by a very frantic Rafinha on the other end, “Neymar?  Are you okay?  Are you hurt?  Where are you?  We lost you last night, are you okay?  Neymar?  Answer me right now!”  The questions were in such rapid succession Neymar didn’t have a chance to even comprehend what the anxious boy on the other end was saying.  

“I-uh… Yeah, I’m okay.  I think.  Rafa slow down… What happened last night?” Neymar managed to choke out while rubbing his temples, throat burning with every word.  

“Oh… Uh, you don’t remember what happened last night?” Rafa questioned slowly.  

“Nope, nothing at all... I just know everything hurts right now.” “I-I don’t think this is something that I can explain over the phone Ney.  Are you at your house?” his voice was laced with caution and pity, 

“Yeah. I mean, I’m pretty sur-,” “I’m coming over.”  And with that, the call ended, without waiting to hear Neymar’s response.  

“What the  _ fuck  _ happened last night?” Neymar thought to himself as he desperately searched for the missing pieces of his memory.

 

...

 

Within 20 minutes, there was a loud knocking on his front door.  He rolled out of bed, almost stumbling over because he was so dizzy.  After taking a minute to regain his balance his doorbell began to ring with a persistent and earth shatteringly loud  _ ding dong _ .  

“Why did I ever get that stupid bell installed?” Neymar thought inwardly as he slowly made his way downstairs.  The ringing continued well after he opened the door to reveal a very distressed Rafinha, rapidly pushing the button on the wall next to the entrance of the house.  

“Good morning Rafa,” Neymar said, scaring the poor boy who didn’t notice his presence, “want to tell me  _ why the fuck you’re at my house before 5 in the morning?” _  It was still dark and chilly outside, the only light coming from the small lamp hanging on the wall.  Rafinha didn’t look Ney in the eye or even respond to his question, he simply pushed his way into the house and made his way to the living room, turning on all the house lights on the way.  

Neymar groaned at how lit up his house was, rubbing his temples, still trying to overcome his hangover from the night before.  When he finally arrived to the living room he saw Rafa pacing back and forth, talking to himself in a hushed tone.  After watching him for a minute, Ney cleared his throat, drawing Rafa’s attention to him mid stride.  

He looked up at Neymar with big eyes, took a deep breath and blurted, “Leo broke up with you last night.” 

Neymar didn’t think it was possible for his whole world could come crashing down with only seven words, but he could practically hear it shattering into billions of pieces.  

 

~• ↓ •~ 

 

“Neymar, I have to talk to you,” Leo said calmly.  He grabbed the Brazilian by the hand and walked into Ney’s bedroom, sitting the him down on his bed, while he stayed standing.  

“Ney?  Are you- are you cheating on me?”  Neymar was speechless, unable to comprehend what was happening.  

Four months.  Four of the happiest months of his life, with someone who he thought was his soul mate.  And now?  He was being accused of cheating by someone who he looked up to from day one, someone who he’s spent a lot of time trying to win over with his stupid jokes and impressive football skills.  Three years trying to gain his idol’s trust.  Two years attempting to receive his affection.  One year spent earning his love.  And only four short months enjoying it.  

He was deep in thought when he was yanked from his stream of consciousness, “Earth to Neymar.  Hello?  Are you even paying attention to me?  You know what?  Fuck it.  I’m sorry but, we’re over.”  And with that Leo began to leave the room.  

“Wait!  Leo, what are you talking about?  You know that I would never cheat on you.”  

Messi turned around with a look of disgust etched on his face making Neymar’s stomach churn, “Yeah?  Then why the fuck has Bruna been telling me you guys have been sleeping with each other for… hmm… What was it?  Oh yeah, six months?”  Neymar got quiet, trying to disappear.  “Yeah, that’s what I thought.  Good-bye Neymar.”  

 

~• ↑ •~ 

 

Rafa was now in front of him, shaking him back into reality, “Earth to Neymar.  Dude, are you okay?”  And with that, Neymar collapsed, back hitting the wall behind him as he buried his head in his hands.  That’s when the tears came, hot streams falling from his eyes.  He felt the arms of his friend drape around him.  All he wanted to do was to curl up in a ball, cry his heart out, and be alone.  He and Rafinha talked for a couple minutes and then Neymar told him he wanted to be by himself for a little while.  Rafa understood, he wrapped Neymar in a tight embrace, as if he was trying to put his broken pieces back together, 

“Call me if you need anything.  I love you.”  With that, he showed himself out the door, leaving Neymar all alone with thoughts blaring through his head.  

His heart rate picked up and he broke out in a sweat, suddenly he felt his throat catch on fire and he ran to the nearest bathroom, hugging the toilet as the contents of his stomach were emptied.  Fresh tears began to flow as he sat on his tile bathroom floor, feeling disgusting.  He stared at the white wall in front of him, throat still burning, cheeks still stinging, heart still shattering.

 

~• ↓ •~ 

 

“Well, you haven’t been perfectly chaste in our relationship either,” Neymar countered, “I see you calling Antonella all the time and you talk about her in your sleep.”  Now Leo looked mad, even more angry than he was before, heat rising to his cheeks.  

“How _fucking_ _dare you_ ,” he began, making Neymar immediately regret opening his mouth, “I have two sons with her.  And I left her.   _For you._  Do you know how many times I see my own children?  But you must know how hard that is huh...  Seeing as you became a father at 19, right?  When we got together, I thought you would somehow manage to grow up, but now I see that you’re the same _pathetic_ kid you were when you were 19.  And yes I may still love Antonella, that will never change, but it wasn’t the same way I _loved_ you,” him saying loved hit Neymar with such force he would have fallen over if he hadn’t been sitting.  

Leo continued, voice rising with each syllable, “I thought you were _ so fucking special _ .  How naive of me.  But now, I see perfectly clear, that I meant nothing to you, so thanks for that.  Bye."

Neymar had never seen him this angry before, but he knew he couldn’t lose him, so he did what he thought was reasonable at the time and started to yell back.  

“The only reason I saw Bruna was because you’re always so busy or too tired.  What am I supposed to do?  I have needs, you know.”  

“You’re so fucking stubborn, Neymar, it’s like I’m talking to a brick wall.  You’ll never understand why what you did was wrong.  A relationship is for two people.  Can you not count or anything?  Or has your alcoholism finally gotten the best of you?  Hit your head while partying?  But what we had is dead now and you only have yourself to blame.”  

Leo turned on his heel calmly, and walked out of Ney’s room, down the stairs quickly, saying goodbye to the small gathering of players and wags then exited the household.  The tears finally hit when he closed his car door, he drove to his new apartment with blurry vision.  

 

...

 

After Leo left his room, Neymar’s sadness turned to anger.  He picked up a picture frame, he and Leo were standing on a beach, arms around each other, smiling; he chucked it against a wall.  Looking around, he found a note that Leo left him when he had to leave early one morning and ripped it until it was in pieces the size of confetti, then threw the contents out his window.  

Three broken vases later, he couldn’t find any more glass to throw against his walls, so he threw his fist instead.  A fresh hole appeared into the wall, a permanent reminder of how he felt, and he knew his hand was most likely broken, but he ignored the throbbing and the bleeding, looking for something else to destroy.  

He then emptied the contents of all of his drawers, throwing clothes everywhere around the room, having them rain down in slow chaos.  When one drawer was finished, he slammed it, hopefully breaking it.  He wanted to break  _ everything _ , make even the inanimate objects feel the kind of pain he was feeling.  After the last of his drawers appeared empty, he found himself breathing heavily; shrinking onto the floor, he cradled his sore hand, refusing to let the tears- that so desperately willed an escape -fall.

 

~• ↑ •~ 

 

Neymar walked back up to his room, now fully awake and turned on the lights.  There it was: the tornado-like disorder that swept across his room.  Aware of what happened and  why his hand hurt he saw everything in a new light.  He walked over to the wall with the hole, fingers tracing the outline of the gap, he was reminded of the pain.  He turned around, then walked over to the broken picture frame, carefully removing the picture lying behind the shattered glass, holding it gently in his hands.  Bringing the picture up to his heart, he wished that he would wake up from this nightmare, to find that he is still curled up in Leo’s strong arms or to find Leo making him his favorite breakfast in one of the shirts he had stolen.  

Neymar wanted his heart to stop hurting, he wanted to be numb, so he walked down and into the kitchen, picture still in hand, and poured himself a drink. 

“To us,” he said solemnly, raising his shot glass to his reflection in the window, and almost cried as the strong liquor slid down his throat.

 

~• ↓ •~ 

 

That’s how Dani found him, sitting in his own chaos, talking quietly to himself like a crazy person.  It took Dani shaking him to regain his consciousness, though he wasn’t asleep, but merely deep in his thoughts.  

“What happened?  We saw Leo leave in a hurry and then you didn’t come down.  I made everyone leave because I knew something was wrong,” said the older boy.  

“He- he broke up with me,” Ney said causing Dani to gasp and immediately  wrap his arms around the former’s fragile body.  “How did he even find out about Bruna?  It was a one time thing” Ney sobbed.  

“It’s in all the media, meu amor, she went to the newspapers exaggerating your story, saying that you told her that you were only with Leo for his money and status and you never loved him.”  

Neymar was too weak to be angry anymore so he instead regained his composure and asked, “Can we go get a drink?  I think I need to just drown my sorrows in alcohol.”  Dani simply nodded cautiously and the duo left, heading towards the nearest bar.  

 

...

 

“Oh, I invited Rafa too, just so we can both keep our eyes on you when we’re there, just so you don’t do something stupid,” Dani stated as he was driving, never taking his sight off of the road.  Ney just hummed in acknowledgement thinking that he only wanted to be surrounded by the steady beat of music, liquor roaming in his body.  

 

...

 

They finally got into the club and on the way to the bar where they spotted Rafinha sitting with a younger girl, laughing carelessly.  As soon as Rafa saw the two walking towards him, he said something to the girl, causing her to roll her eyes, get up and leave, making sure to sway her hips as she walked away.  Rafinha could tell something was wrong and he got up, quickly enveloping Neymar in a hug.  He already smelled of alcohol.  Dani filled Rafa in on the situation as Neymar began to order drinks.  

He was one beer and four shots in when Dani finally finished telling the story.  Rafa turned to him with sympathetic eyes and Neymar wanted to puke.  He didn’t want people feeling sorry for him, he could do that by himself.  

“I’m going to go dance,” Neymar said, beginning to get up, but Rafa stopped him saying, “I don’t think that’s a good idea Ney.”  

Neymar yanked his hand free from the other’s hand and knocked down two more shots, “Don’t fucking touch me Raf, I just want to go dance,” with that he pivoted on his heel and headed towards the loud music.  

Dani turned to him saying, “You shouldn’t have let him go.” “How much trouble can he really get in?  He only had two shots.”  They both hummed in agreement, unaware of how much Neymar had actually drank.  

 

...

 

Deep in the crowd, Neymar was grinding on a random girl.  He didn’t even know what her face looked like, but she was blonde, had a perfect body and was open to his sloppy dancing, so he couldn’t care less.  Her hips swayed in rhythm to the beat of the music, and he would be lying if he didn’t admit he was hot and very turned on.  She eventually turned around, arms wrapping around his neck, legs intertwining with his own.  Her eyes were beautiful- he thinks -he couldn’t figure out if they were blue or grey in the lighting, but he could tell they were beautiful.   His hands slipped from her back to her ass, grabbing at them lightly, craving the look of deviousness in her eyes.  

He leaned in, then felt someone rip him from her.  A fuming tall guy dressed in all black didn’t seem to happy, “ _ What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” _ he asked, shielding the girl behind him.  Neymar looked from his face to the girls, which was still full of deviousness and excitement, knowing full and well what she was doing.  

“Hey  _ she _ came onto  _ me _ , dude,” he slurred out, clearly drunk.  The tall man turned to the girl, who denied it, and then focused back on Neymar.  He took in the figure in front of him: tall, buff, and most notably: bald.  He seemed way too old for the girl, and way too ugly as well (she could do so much better).  

“So, what is it, asshole?  You calling my girl a liar?”  

“I don’t know.  Why don’t you ask the snakey bitch yourself, you fucking egg.”  

“What the fuck did you say?” the goliath of a man asked.  

“You heard me puta,” Neymar spat, with that, he man stepped towards him drawing his arm back and punched Neymar right above his eye. 

Ney fell, knocked down by the blow and onto the grimy floor of the club.  His head hit the ground and darkness began to take over his vision as he watched the dancing feet in front of him.  Instead of fighting the sleep, he welcomed the darkness, knowing that when he was unconscious, he felt no pain, suffering or heartbreak; he could escape the nightmare he was living in, if only for a few minutes.  

Then, he felt peace.  

He found serenity in the twilight.

~• ↑ •~


	2. The Calm Before the Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I don't have enough energy to make a proper summary bc this chapter has taken A WHOLE LOT OUT OF ME EMOTIONALLY. But basically this is all the backstory with Bruna and how Neymar got himself into his mess.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!
> 
> This chapter is all about Bruna and Neymar. What Neymar did and the things that happened between them. I'm very sorry if you actually like Bruna because she seems like a terrible person here but anyway! ENJOY! xx
> 
> As always, please be sure to comment any questions or just if you like the series! The support really helps! enjoy xx  
> p.s follow my tumblr blog: viscaneymessi (if you want to) :))
> 
> -Kiarra <3

Money, glitter, stardom, fame

Welcome to the glamour game

Lipstick, hairspray, Jimmy Choos

Faking smiles, downing booze

They prop you up to watch you fall

But isn’t fortune worth it all?

 

(~ one month before the break up ~)

There she was, sitting down at a small café, gently blowing on a small cup that she grasped with both hands.  Her hair was as beautiful as he remembered, waves cascading down her back in perfect ringlets.  Everything suited her, from what she was wearing to the environment around her.  She was wearing a simple, cream dress and a large sunhat, surrounded by vines, flowers and white umbrellas, a place that he thought only existed in every girl’s dreams.  

He wanted a painting of her sitting there, entitling it:  _ The Calm Before the Storm _ , as he knew that this serene feeling would soon disappear as quickly as it appeared.  Neymar wouldn’t call what he felt for her anything more than affection.  There was no love, there was no friendship, but he couldn’t deny that he cared for her.  

It is hard to completely forget the love that they once shared, the long nights spent whispering secrets under the covers with hearts beating in unison, or the walks on the beach, fingers intertwined and hushed voices talking about their future together.  

But that chapter of his life was over, her character should have been erased from the plot, but here she was, a hiccup in the writing, he thought, nothing more than an accidental stroke of the pen.

 

...

 

She noticed him standing a distance away and waved him over to her table.  Neymar walked slowly, careful not to draw any unwanted attention to himself.  No one could know that he was here, especially not paparazzi or Leo.  He was in enemy territory.  He just wanted to find out what she wanted and leave, hopefully never having to talk to her again.  She was looking down at her coffee until Neymar sat down, then her eyes snapped up, filled with lust.  

“Hey Ney,” she purred, “I ordered you a coffee.  I tried to remember how you-.”

Neymar cut her off saying, “Bruna, just tell me why I am here.  We’re not friends, we haven’t spoken in over five months, there must be _something_ you want.”  Her face grew sour, lips pulled into a tight line, arms folding over her chest.  

“I want you, Ney.  I miss you.  I don’t even know why we broke up.  Let’s put the past behind us,” as she spoke, she uncrossed her arms, inching one of her hands forward until it was on one of Neymar's.  

Neymar felt disgusted and pulled his arm back, anger fueling, “You know that I’m with Leo now, right?  Him and I are very happy, there is nothing you can say or do to make me leave him.  You're the one that ended us, anyway.  What we _had_ is dead, Bruna.”

“Oh?” she asked dubiously, “Are you sure about that Neymar?”  He simply nodded, knots forming in his stomach as he began to realize that this meet-up was a trap.  “Do you see that man behind me in he black hat?  Yes?  Well, his name is Adam, and he is with me.  He is a professional photographer and an expert in photoshop,” she claimed proudly as she leaned in closer and whispered, “If you don’t break up with Leo, I will do it for you.  He won’t even want to look at you after I’m done with you.”

_ Click  _ .  

Neymar’s attention was drawn to the man behind Bruna who was now holding a camera that was aimed right towards them, “Smile Ney,” whispered Bruna, a devious smile spreading across her face.  

 

...

 

“You doing this won’t make me love you Bruna,” Neymar said frantically, trying to change her mind.  

She brought a perfectly manicured finger up to tap on her chin as she thought, “Maybe not, but at least you won’t be with Leo.  _  If I can’t have you, no one can.”  _  Neymar shuddered at the thought of Leo hating him.  “Maybe if I just break up with him then he wouldn’t hate me,” he thought.  

“I’m not scared of you Bruna, I can just tell the press that you’re lying.”  

“Adam, can we see the pictures please?” she called out to the man, over her shoulder.  He got up immediately, walking towards him with confidence even Neymar was jealous of.  Handing Bruna the camera, he offered Neymar a bright smile and nod, then stalked off into the café.  “Wow, these are better than I thought they would be,” she said, grinning to herself.  

Neymar took the camera from her hands flipping through over twenty pictures of her with her hand on his, and a couple pictures of when she leaned into him that looked like they were kissing.  Neymar went to delete the pictures but Bruna stopped him saying, “I wouldn’t even make the effort, he already has those saved on a hard drive.  Don’t waste your time.”  

He felt defeated, nothing he could do would make the situation better.  And the worst thing was that Bruna knew she had won, it was simply time for the lion to play with her meal.  Ney knew a pretty girl like her has, and will get eaten up by the media, especially if she was involved in a scandal.  The newspapers and tabloids already hated him and would do anything in their power to make him look bad.  

“What do I have to do?” Ney said shrinking in his seat, finally caving in.  

Bruna looked up at him and clapped her hands together, cheshire cat grin appearing on her lips, “Now you’re talking.”

 

...

 

“Just one date,” Neymar said firmly.  

“How about two?” Bruna said, trying to push his buttons.  

“No Bruna, you are already ruining my life enough as it is, don’t force me to do anything.”  

With that, she pouted, eyes full of mischief, “It would be way more enjoyable if you stopped stressing and maybe had fun Ney.  After the date you don’t have to go out with me anymore if you don’t want to, just break up with Leo."  Her face softened, "I just want what’s best for you.”  

Neymar scoffed, thinking, “ if she actually wanted what was best for me, she wouldn’t break me and Leo up.”  “Fine, but your  _ one  _ date is tonight.  Try not to wear anything too ridiculous.  I will pick you up at 7,” he stood up and walked away without another word.  

As soon as he got back into his car he received a call from Leo.  Thoughts began to erupt from his mind, running at a mile a minute.   _ Did he find out.  Does he know and is calling to break up with me.  He hates me.  I have to tell him the truth. _

“Neymar?  Hello, are you there?” Leo’s soft voice called out, anchoring him back into the real world.  

“Oh, h-hi amor” Neymar stuttered out, heartbeat ringing in his chest.  

“I just wanted to make sure you were still coming over tonight.  I made Italian food, your favorite.”  Neymar quickly muted his microphone and screamed as loud as he could, slurring curse words, infusing hate with each syllable.  After he calmed down for a bit he rubbed his temples thinking of a lie.  

He un-muted his mic, “Ah, I’m sorry amor Rafaella needs me tonight, her uh- boyfriend just broke up with her,” he tried to say as confidently as possible.  

“Oh, I see,” Leo breathed, disappointment apparent, “ Tell Rafa I say to feel better.”  

“I will, amor, I can call you later.”  

“Okay.  I love you,” Leo said, obviously still sad.

“Love you.”  The call ended and Neymar let his head fall to the steering wheel, holding back tears of frustration.

Neymar felt like puking, lying to Leo hurt him in a way he never thought was possible.  Their relationship is going to end.  He knows it has to, but now it's just a matter of time when the truth finally escapes and finds it’s way to Leo.  Neymar didn’t know how to prepare himself for the storm of pain that was coming, but he couldn't distract himself by thinking about the future and only one person was on his mind right now:  _ Bruna Marquezine. _

 

...

 

It was already 7 and Neymar didn’t know where the time had gone.  It had been 5 hours from when he first talked to Bruna and he had showered, dressed up, and arrived at her house.  He was now standing on her doorstep, waiting for her arrival so they could get the date over and done with.  The door swung open and she stood with a familiar short, dark blue dress that had a deep v neck and black stilettos that tied around her ankles.  Her hair was in beachy waves and her bangs were in small braids that were pinned back.  Bruna’s makeup looked like it was professionally done and it seemed as if she walked straight off of a magazine cover or a runway show.  

Neymar couldn’t help staring, but luckily Bruna was doing the same, she took in what he was wearing: everything was black from his shirt to his leather jacket, jeans and shoes.  The only thing he was wearing that had color was a gold cross necklace that laid on the middle of his chest.  

They were both hit with waves of nostalgia.  Neymar remembered the first time Bruna wore that dress.  He was introduced to her father, whom approved of him only after a long talk.  Ney remembered how their conversation was filled with brutally honest questions and stern comments about how much his daughter meant to him.  They were both so excited that her dad liked him that they went and bought the most expensive champagne they could get their hands on and drank like kings and queens, falling asleep to each other's drunken giggles and clumsy sweet nothings. 

“Well, let’s go,” they both said in unison.  

 

...

 

Arriving to the restaurant, Bruna tried to hold Neymar’s hand.  Neymar shuddered, but let her, hoping she would eventually forget about the deal.  He tried to be the perfect gentleman: he pulled out her chair for her and even struck up (what he thought were) riveting conversations.  

“So how’s modeling going?  I see you in the magazines once in awhile, must make your mother proud.”  

“It’s going great.  I love walking on the runways the most though, getting to show off an artist’s creations, it’s very rewarding to see how much people love their work.  How’s football?  Still showing off to impress the girls- er- boys now, I guess,” she said scrambling her words in an attempt to not offend him.  

He chuckled, waving her off, “It’s doing okay, I’m a bit off my game right now but the team has been supporting me.  And yes, but sometimes Leo hates it when I show off, says it’s childish.”  They both shared a laugh and were interrupted by the waiter asking for what they wanted to eat.  

The man was clearly oogling Bruna, but Neymar didn’t want to show that it bothered him.  They were both engulfed in flirting that Neymar had a chance to look at his phone.  

He had received a few texts from Leo: “Tell Rafa I said, that no man is worth her beauty and she is a strong girl…”, “I saved you some Italian food if you want to swing by later when you come home…”, “Goodnight amor, I love you.”  

Neymar was hit with a wall of guilt.  He felt as if he was undeserving of Leo's love and affection.  He wasn't worthy of Leo opening up to him and revealing his true self.  If he only knew what was going on right now, Leo would hate him.  Maybe that’s what Neymar needed to make this less painful, maybe Leo hating him would make it all easier.  

“Penny for your thoughts?” Bruna asked quietly when she noticed that Neymar seemed to be miles away from where he really was.  

But Ney simply shook his head trying to change the subject, “I see you seem to fancy our waiter.”  

“Jealous are we, Ney?  But if you must know, he and I have a little bit of history and we were just catching up.”  

“I’m not jealous because I can assure you that I am still very much in love with Leo.  But that’s good for you, maybe you should go out with him,” he said trying to take her attention off of him so he can return to his relationship with Leo.  

“You won’t be for long, I can promise you that,” Bruna said under her breath, taking a sip of her white wine.  

Neymar was about to ask what she said, but the waiter had already come back with their appetizers.

They ate in mostly silence but, surprisingly, Neymar had a good time, they talked about their futures, she even brought up Davi and how lucky he was to have a dad like him.  For the first time, she didn’t try to flirt, it was just as if they were talking as old friends, Neymar was refreshed.  

 

...

 

After dinner, Neymar drove them to a nearby bar.  The music was good enough, people served him free drinks and no one seemed to make a big deal because of who he was.  This was perfect, maybe he could somehow drink away his problems or drown himself in the music.  After finally drinking enough to feel tipsy his urge to dance increased and he dragged Bruna to the dancefloor.  She rolled her eyes but complied and began to dance with him, just like old times, except this time, Neymar was the only one drunk.  

Their hips began to sway in unison and Neymar was engulfed with thoughts too loud to be muffled by the blaring music.   Maybe Bruna wasn’t as evil as she made herself out to be.  Maybe even the worst of people deserve a second chance.  Neymar was finally willing to reopen his heart to her, the girl that broke his heart.  

  
  
...

 

Bruna ended up driving them to her house because Neymar was a little too drunk at the time but he ended up sobering up enough to walk in a straight line by the time they reached their destination. 

They were standing on the porch of her house when she began to thank him for the night, “Neymar, thank you for tonight.  I had fun and I hope you did too.”  Her hand crept onto his shoulder as she looked up at him with glossy eyes.  

“As much as I hate to say it, I did enjoy tonight.”  Their eyes connected, and Neymar had a nauseating feeling explode, enveloping his entire body.  Bruna leaned in and moved her hand to the back of his neck, pulled his head towards her.  Their lips were close enough to touch and Neymar was trying to restrain himself by thinking of Leo, but the alcohol clouded his mind.  

He couldn’t stop what was happening, but somewhere deep down, a part of him didn’t want to cease.  Shards of his past, of love, were being ripped from the depths of his soul, through all of the heart breaks, lies and deceit, to the surface.  He felt too many emotions, his skin buzzing with anticipation. The last thread of his self-control was slashed and he spiraled down into lust filled oblivion. 

Their lips connected and in the beginning he felt nothing, he felt as if he were kissing a wall of cold bricks.  Neymar was glad, happy that the feelings were gone completely.  But as the kiss deepened, he couldn’t deny that something was beginning to erupt from somewhere inside of him.  It didn’t feel like the fireworks he felt when he kissed Leo, but a much more subtle feeling, like the bubbles in champagne or the hum of crickets in an open field.  

Her hands worked their way up into his hair as she took his bottom lip between her teeth.  

_ Click.  _

Neymar looked up quickly, breaking the kiss but not fully pulling away.  Bruna still had her arms around his neck, but pulled her lips up next to his ear whispering, “ _ Sorry Ney, but I intend to win.  All’s fair...” _

Ney could feel himself slipping away from reality with the rest of the quote echoing in his head:  _ in love and war, in love and war, in love and war.   _ The worst thing was, however, that  Neymar couldn’t decide which one he was more afraid of. 

 


	3. Pictures Don't Lie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter takes place three days after the date with Bruna and is all about lying and Leo finding out about Ney and Bruna. This chapter is basically the lead up to the first chapter or the night when the relationship is broken up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!
> 
> I'm so so so so sorry it took me this long to update! I have just been traveling all summer and I haven't gotten around to it. I'll try to update once again before school starts again (August 16) but NO PROMISES!! I'm sorry that I'm trash and get writers block or I'm just not in the mood to write sometimes and then sometimes I just get a surge of motivation and //have// to write idk man. I tried to put some symbolism in here because I really want to expand my writing/how I write (there's about 4 or 5 places so look out for those ;))
> 
> Also there is a dream within the story and beginning is indicated with ~• ↓ •~ and end with ~• ↑ •~ 
> 
> As always, please be sure to comment any questions or just if you like the series! The support really helps! enjoy xx  
> p.s follow my tumblr blog: viscaneymessi (if you want to) :))
> 
> -Kiarra <3

Eenie meenie miney moe

Turn a lover to a foe

Never ever let him go

Catch a tiger by the toe

Break a heart, but break it slow

Say goodbye with each hello

 

It was dark, even considering everything now was so fucking dark.  He didn’t know what time it was, and frankly he didn’t care, all that was on his mind was Leo.  He was all Neymar thought about anymore.  

I mean, that’s how it’s been all along, but the thoughts that used to be of love were now full of terror and pity as he had been lying to Leo for three days now.  

 _Three whole fucking days_.  Every time he saw Leo smile, he felt like his heart was being smashed in his chest.  A war was going on in his mind, and nothing made sense.  All reason was thrown out of the window, and for once in his life, the talkative boy was at a loss for words.  He stopped going on social media, speaking to his friends, smiling at practices.  

His life was in slow-motion, and only getting slower.  He was awaiting the day that everything just stopped.   _He prayed that it came sooner_ , so he wouldn’t have to deal with the pain anymore.  

Those close to him noticed, even the press noticed the drop in his mood, and no one had an explanation.  Leo noticed, but didn’t feel like it was his place to ask, he knew that if Neymar wanted to talk, he would.  But what everyone didn’t know, was that Neymar was playing a waiting game, until everything exploded in his face.  

And trust him, he did think about telling Leo, about coming clean.  He thought about it every fucking second of the day.  But something in him couldn’t.  Every time he got close to telling him, his voice caught in his throat, he panicked and instead of telling him about Bruna he would say, “I just wanted to tell you that I love you.”  (This was followed by a sympathetic smile from Leo, and a heartbroken look in his eyes, because he knew the poor boy was hiding something from him).  

Neymar didn’t even know if those three words held any truth anymore.  Because he knew that if he truly loved Leo he confess everything, he would be able to sleep at night, he would eat and tell jokes.  But he couldn’t do any of those things.  So there he was, sitting on his bed, in the dark, with Leo sleeping peacefully next to him.

Ney looked at the sleeping figure, so peaceful, so patient, and so beautiful.  Seeing him curled up with a blanket draped perfectly over his body made his skin crawl.  

All the boy wanted was to make the sickly sensations that controlled him to stop, _oh to make it stop_.  He’d give anything to stop his skin from feeling like it was melting or to silence the voices in his head that were yelling, no, screaming at him to tell the truth.  

Eventually, he became so overwhelmed by the emotions that he couldn’t control himself, and he knew he had to leave before he woke Leo up, so he went down stairs and into his backyard.  When he got there, the full moon was high in the sky.  The boy fell to his knees and begged God to show him the way, to clear his conscious, but all he heard in return was the rustling of leaves in the trees above him.  Defeated, he dropped his head, beginning to cry into his hands.  

The sudden sounds disturbed Poker from his sleep and he went to see what was making all of the noise.  He saw Neymar illuminated by the moonlight and his energy level shot through the roof, running up to him and rubbing against him, licking his hands.  

Frightened, Neymar pulled his hand away and looked at the dog, who was wagging his tail and looking up at him with hopeful eyes.  Ney pushed the dog away but, the animal persisted, nudging his side and licking his arms.  Without warning, anger swelled up from inside Neymar, something in him broke.  

His fists curled up by his sides and he yelled at the poor dog, “Go away Poker.  Can’t you see that I don’t want you here right now?  You stupid fucking dog.  I only got you as a friend for Davi, why can’t you just leave me the fuck alone.”  

With that, Poker’s head dropped, and his tail stopped wagging and found a place between his legs.  The dog went back to his house, ever so slowly and laid his head on his paws looking up at Neymar cautiously.  “Fuck,” Neymar muttered as he stood, dusted the grass off his knees and walked over to the dog.

As soon as Neymar extended his palm to try to apologize, Poker flinched, jerking his head back as if he thought the man would hit him.  Neymar dropped his hand before touching the dog, thinking he could do nothing right, and went back up to the room.  

To his surprise, Leo was awake, face lit up by his phone screen.  Neymar quickly wiped his cheeks from the remnants of the tears that stained them earlier, and made his way over to the boy.  Hearing feet pad across the carpet, Leo looked up from his phone, then sat up, opening his arms for Neymar to fall into.  

The Brazilian knew he didn’t deserve it, but he walked into the embrace, allowing the smaller boy to comfort him.  The older man stroked his back and massaged his scalp, in an attempt to sooth him.  Neymar pulled away and looked at him, _he really looked at him_ , the man’s face was etched with a mixture of hurt and confusion but Neymar ignored the heart wrenching feeling he had deep inside, and gave him a chaste kiss.  

“I don’t deserve you,” the younger boy muttered more to himself than anyone else.  

“Is that what’s been bothering you amor?” Messi said, as he used a finger to lift the other's chin to look at him in the eyes.  He searched the green eyes for the solution to questions that begged an escape from his thoughts, but to no avail.  Neymar had become ice cold, his eyes not even whispering the answers Leo knew he deserved.  

Defeated, he sighed, his hand moving from his face to rake it through his own hair in frustration.  Leo didn’t wait for any kind of response, he simply laid back down and turned to his side, leaving his back to face Neymar.  

“If you don’t want to tell me, I understand.  Just don’t keep being so distant from me.  I- It’s breaking my heart, Neymar.  I feel like I’m losing you.”  

“I’m sorry,” Ney replied, Leo still not looking at him.  

“I know.  You’ve told me that 17 times in the past two days, I’ve been counting.  You say that, but nothing changes.  I just don’t know if I can believe that anymore.  Goodnight Neymar.”  

He couldn’t move, let alone respond.  His muscles were stiff, heart thumping so hard in his chest he thought it would eventually burst.  Neymar sat there, sitting back on his heels, staring at the boy, who was now deep in sleep again.  Eventually, he crawled back into bed and allowed the sleep that willed his eyes to close finally take over. Though, his dreams soon turned to nightmares as he tossed and turned in his sleep.

~• ↓ •~

 

Neymar was in a completely white room.  

No windows or doors, he was just there, completely and utterly alone.  Suddenly he heard someone screaming and yelling for help, _for his help_.  The voice was familiar, he soon recognized that the voice echoing in the room belonged to Leo.  

He was transported to a large cliff and stared down as the love of his life dangled from the edge.  

Neymar reached down to save Leo and he began to pull him up and the sky was turning grey, wind rushing around them.  He kept pulling, but the weight kept getting heavier and heavier and soon he didn’t think he was going to be able to keep holding on for much longer.  

Leo was begging and pleading him to pull harder and to save him, but Neymar was growing weak, his grip slipping.  

The storm around them was intensifying and electricity surged though the sky with loud cracks.  Neymar looked down to Leo one last time before his arms gave out and Leo escaped his grasp falling from the cliff to the ground beneath.  

He was screaming for Leo to come back as he was transported again to the bottom of the cliff and cradled the dead body of his love.  His tears were falling on the corpse and he was rocking back and forth hysterically.

Suddenly, the face of Leo became distorted, changing to a face that resembled Bruna.  

The features were the same but she had red eyes and the body soon looked exactly like snake.  She then smiled, teeth sharp and pointed like daggers, venom dripping from the edges.  Her mouth twitched up into a smirk as her eyes narrowed in on Neymar.

Her tongue flicked out as she hissed then lunged forward at him.

“ _Tell him the truth_ ,” she screamed.  

 

~• **↑** •~

 

The hellish face of a snake was the last thing Ney saw before he jolted awake, sun already streaming through the windows.  Leo was nowhere to be seen, so Neymar went downstairs to look for him.  

“Leftovers are in the fridge. I’ll be back at 5,” was scrawled on a sticky note on the counter.  There was no “Love you. -Leo xx,” at the end of the note like there usually was.  No hearts or little flowers were carefully drawn at the corners like sometimes before.  Neymar stared at the note and his heart hurt, there was no signs of affection, simply a note just written for the purpose of giving Neymar enough information so he wouldn’t call Leo up and ask where he is or what he’s doing.  

He was searching through the fridge when his phone buzzed and Bruna’s caller ID popped up.  Ney sucked in a breath and accepted the call.  

“Hey Ney,” she started cheerily, “just checking in on your progress with… What’s his name? Oh right, Leo.”  He rolled his eyes knowing good and well she knew his name and was just messing with him.  

“Uh, it’s great.  I actually broke things off with him last night,” he lied.  

“Oh great!  That’s wonderful news.  How was it?  Did he take it hard?”  Now, Neymar was angry, but he thought that if he just kept deceiving and convincing her it was true, she would eventually leave him and his relationship alone.  

“Yeah, it was actually pretty pathetic.  He cried a lot, like a little kid.  I just told him that I didn’t care about him, and I just wanted someone easy, but things got out of control and we went on for way too long.”  

He could hear Bruna giggle on the other end, “Wow, you really gave it to him then?  See?  Don’t you feel better now?”  

“More than you can imagine,” he replied.  

They talked a little more, and after the call ended Ney actually felt better.  He had a little spring in his step and he felt like he dodged a bullet.  If Bruna just believed that he broke up with Leo, he wouldn’t actually have to break up with him.  

He didn’t know why the thought never occurred earlier when he was being distant from the people that loved him the most, but that was all about to end.  

 

...

 

It was now 2:37 pm and Leo wasn’t home for a couple hours, so Neymar took the time to go shopping for ingredients to make dinner.  He decided on a pasta white sauce, and a salad.  Should be easy enough, he thought.  

Neymar was almost done setting the table with finishing touches, lighting the candles and pouring bubbly champagne into two tall glasses, when he heard the front door open.  

“Ney?” Leo called out.  He heard Neymar call him into the kitchen, and was taken aback from what he saw.  There he was, standing in a black sports jacket and pants with a white button down, staring at Leo with a wide grin.  

Leo was frozen in shock, so Ney took his hand and led him to the candle-lit table, pulled out his chair for him and placed a napkin on his lap, kissing him on the temple.  Ney disappeared into the kitchen and came back balancing two plates of pasta and two salads in his arms, as he, not so delicately placed the dinner in front of Leo.  

“What’s all this for?” Leo questioned, as he looked as the delicious looking meal in front of him.  

“Nothing.  I-uh felt bad for how distant I’ve been acting lately and decided to make it up for you.  I made everything myself,” he beamed, “I hope you like it.”  Leo nodded, then they ate, talking more than actually eating the food.  

At some point during the dinner, Messi reached over and held Neymar’s hand as they talked and soon enough, they were upstairs panting and sweating under the covers as their half eaten dinner got cold sitting on the table.  

 

...

 

In the morning, Leo woke up with Neymar cuddled up into his side, as the light through the shutters shone on his face.  He looked so soft, so delicate and angelic that he couldn’t help but stare.  Neymar’s eyelashes rested on his cheeks perfectly and his open mouth let soft snores escape as he laid on Leo’s chest.  

Messi didn’t resist reaching his hand out and rubbing the side of the sleeping boy’s face with his knuckles and soon enough the boy stirred, eyes fluttering open.  

The way the light shone through the window hit Neymar's eyes just perfectly that it looked like there was gold flecks hidden in the green.  He reached up and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as he yawned, then stretched out like a kitten, and Leo laughed lovingly at how childish he was.  

 

...

 

After training that day, everyone had left and Leo was practicing his free kicks alone at the practice field.  Even Neymar had gone home, because he wanted to prepare for the party they were having later that night.  

As Leo made his way back into the training room, he felt an uneasy feeling in his stomach, _like someone else was there_.  He called out to see if anyone of his team stayed behind, but there was no response, so he shrugged it off and made his way to his cubby, where all of his things were.  

He dropped the cleats in his hand as he saw a picture taped to the back of his little locker.  It was of Bruna and Neymar kissing on a porch somewhere.  He was all dressed up and they both looked beautiful, like they were straight off of a magazine cover.  

He looked down and at the bottom of his cubby was a pile of other pictures of them together, each having a different date written at the bottom in silver writing.  

Leo’s heart was racing, he wanted to believe that it was photoshopped, or that it was just someone who looked like Neymar.  But all his hopes were shattered when he took the picture that was taped to the back of the cubby and flipped it over, looking for a date: March 26, 2016, which was four days ago, and a phone number.  

Leo’s head was spinning, so he sat down and used his phone to call the number.

After one ring the other line picked up, “Hey Leo!  I’ve been waiting for your call.”

 

...

 

Hot tears were streaming from his face as he sat on the cold tile floor of the dressing room.  He didn’t know what to feel, as he was still in denial of everything that he was just told.

Bruna was so kind about everything, and claimed that Neymar told her he was only "using Leo for his fame and wealth" and after she found that out, she broke things off with him because she didn’t like that Ney was doing such harm to a “sweet guy like you”.  Bruna also said she told Ney to confess to Leo and that the relationship was only for show but he refused and that’s the reason she sent him the pictures.  

Leo felt numb.  He felt as if someone ripped out his heart and stomped on it right before his eyes.  How could someone he love so much be this spiteful and cruel towards him?  This sadness soon turned into anger, as Leo wiped his eyes and sped home.  

When he got there, the party had already started and he could see Neymar sitting with Pique, both gripping their stomachs laughing.  Other players and friends were talking and mingling, hands holding plates of food or glasses of white wine.  The man made his way across the room, nodding politely at those who said hello, as he mustered all the sanity he had left.   

 

_“Neymar, I have to talk to you,” Leo said calmly._


End file.
